


Logical

by fadedlikethelilac



Series: Prowl week 2020 [1]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers Generation One
Genre: M/M, Prowl Week 2020, surprize friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-19
Updated: 2020-04-19
Packaged: 2021-03-01 21:20:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 913
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23733742
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fadedlikethelilac/pseuds/fadedlikethelilac
Summary: Prowl isn't sure what causes his crashes, he just knows they usually happen when he over clocks his tactical computer.On this mission he's going to make sure that doesn't happen.
Relationships: Prowl/Shockwave
Series: Prowl week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1709518
Comments: 7
Kudos: 50
Collections: Prowl Week





	Logical

**Author's Note:**

> Thought I'd join the fun of Prowl week, and I figured I'd double down with seven days of rare pairs.  
> wish me luck, (cos guess who's writing this on the fly.)
> 
> Thankfully betaed by mogseltof.  
> He's the only thing saving you from my awful spelling and grammar.

Prowl was long used to his battle computer glitching on him. Long used to waking up to a worried Ratchet or a panicked Red Alert. Sometimes he knew the cause clearly enough, his processor racing, and other times there seemed to be no causes at all. He always booted up fine again, and he’d yet to allow Ratchet to hold him for extended observation to find out exactly what the cause was. It usually happened when he overclocked his tactical computer; so on this mission he’d carefully planned around that. 

Cybertron was simply too far from Earth. That’s why the Decepticon space bridge was so important. Spec-ops teams had managed to sneak across several times, with varying levels of success. This time he wanted better. He had put himself on this mission so the team would have a tactical officer who could actually respond to the changing situation on the ground. 

He thought he’d been so careful planning everything out, underclocking his tactical unit to prevent a crash and staying by the space bridge while the team went on ahead. He just needed to be on Cybertron so he could stay in contact with the team. He’d spent half an orn working on this mission, and now it was all falling apart. 

He felt the creeping stillness in his left arm that always directly preceded a crash. He didn’t even have the time to get a message to the team, his commsuite already locking him out, as his systems fell offline one by one. Normally crashes happened faster than this — Prowl barely had time to form the thought before the last of his conscious processes went offline. 

* * *

He onlined even slower, expecting to hear Ratchet swearing at any moment. He’d agree to whatever tests Ratchet wanted to run. He needed to find out what was causing this. He’d compromised an entire mission and he wouldn’t know how badly until he could see the reports. His field flicked in annoyance, he’d have to let Smokescreen handle the debriefs.

“You seem to be awake.” 

Prowl jerked up trying to get his feet under him as fast as possible.

“Logically if I was going to kill you I would have done so by now.” Shockwave was speaking perfectly calmly, as though Prowl wasn’t a captured enemy prisoner. 

“Yes, logically I must assume you intend to torture me,” Prowl said coldly, backing carefully towards the door. His blaster was gone and he could clearly see that Shockwave was armed.

“You are more underclocked than I thought.” Strangely it didn’t sound like an insult like it would have coming from Starscream, simply like an observation. Prowl’s field still prickled with indignation though. 

Shockwave flicked an energon cube across the floor to him. “Here. You shouldn’t keep yourself so under-fueled all the time.”

“I’m not under-fueled.” Prowl snapped his response even as the low fuel warning started flashing on his HUD showing him the lie. What? He could have sworn he’d topped off before he’d left for this mission, how was he now at less than twenty percent fuel. 

“If you’d wanted to torture me, you would have restrained me,” Prowl said slowly. “You could be trying to drug me, but it would be easier simply to inject whatever into me while my processor was offline. Though you may not have an injector and be counting on me to make that assumption in order to succeed in drugging me.”

Approval flashed through Shockwave’s field and Prowl recoiled. Shockwave held up an intravenous injector.

Prowl picked up the cube slowly. “So what do you want?”

“I had hoped for a decent conversation. I haven’t spoken to anyone other than Starscream and Megatron recently, and no one for several vorns prior to that.” 

Prowl winced, okay that actually made sense. For all that he liked solitude they were still a social species. He couldn’t imagine that much time without someone to talk to. He took a small sip of the cube, waiting for a chemical analysis to complete before he drank any more. “How did you know I was low on fuel?”

“You crashed.” Shockwave sounded surprised. “Were you not aware your crashes were caused by low fuel?”

Prowl shook his head slightly. “No… Usually it’s my tactical computer.” Internally he swore, he hadn’t meant to admit that weakness. 

Shockwave’s optic flashed at a steady rhythm. “Ah yes — the power draw — that would almost certainly cause problems if it was a later install. Especially if it was experimental technology.”

“Just how much do you know about me?”

“I merely take an interest. You could do great things for the Decepticon cause.”

Prowl retreated further towards the door, just as the fuel test came back clear causing further confusion. “I’m an Autobot,” Prowl said, putting as much rejection in his field as possible. 

“A shame. I have enjoyed talking to you. You should go now before your team notices your absence.”

“You’re going to let me go just like that?”

Shockwave’s optic flashed again. “Yes. You only intend to make contact with Elita’s team, not direct sabotage on this base. Our missions are not opposing, there is no need for me to interfere.” 

“Thank you for the fuel,” Prowl said stiffly, his processor still reeling. 

“Oh and you should get your medic to upgrade your fuel system. Something that’s at least delta class three or better should prevent the crashes if my calculations are correct.” 

Prowl fled before things got even weirder.


End file.
